The Antelope
Was Standing Unconsciously About 170 Yards, Or, As I Then Considered,
About 180 Yards From Me, Perfectly Motionless, And Much Resembling A
Figure Fixed Upon A Pedestal.
The broadside was exposed, thus it would
have been impossible to have had a more perfect opportunity after a long
stalk.
Having waited in a position for a minute or two, to become cool
and to clear my eyes, I aimed at his shoulder. Almost as I touched the
trigger, the antelope sank suddenly upon its knees, in which position it
remained for some seconds on the summit of the ant-hill, and then rolled
down to the base, dead. I stepped the exact distance, 169 paces. I had
fired rather high, as the bullet had broken the spine a little in front
of the shoulder-blade. It was a very beautiful animal, a fine bull, of
the same kind that I had killed on 1st April. This antelope was about
thirteen hands high at the shoulder, the head long, the face and ears
black, also the top of the head; the body bright bay, with a stripe of
black about fifteen inches in width extending obliquely across the
shoulder, down both the fore and the hind legs, and meeting at the rump.
The tail was long, with a tuft of long black hair at the extremity. The
horns were deeply annulated, and curved backwards towards the shoulders.
"This was a very large animal, that would have weighed quite thirty
stone when gralloched. My boatman, who had been watching the sport,
immediately despatched a man for assistance to the diahbeeah. I enjoyed
the beauty of this animal: the hide glistened like the coat of a
well-groomed horse.
"I did not reach the diahbeeah until 6 p.m.; we then started without
delay, and reached the fleet at midnight, at the junction of the ditch
through which we had previously arrived at the main river.
"April 4. - The vessels are passing with great difficulty over the
shallow entrance of the ditch.
"April 5. - All the vessels have passed. At 6 p.m. we succeeded, after
much labour, in getting the last of the steamers through. This
accomplished, and having the stream in our favour, we passed along in a
compact line for about a mile and a half, the ditch that we had opened
being clear and in good order.
"April 6. - Another soldier died. This poor man was the companion of him
who, a few days ago, prophesied his own end when he lost his friend.
Curiously enough, he died as he was passing the spot where his friend
was buried, and we had to bury him in the same ant-hill. The Egyptian
troops are very unhealthy. When they first joined the expedition, they
were an exceedingly powerful body of men, whose PHYSIQUE I much admired,
although their MORALE was of the worst type. I think that every man has
lost at least a stone in weight since we commenced this dreadful voyage
in chaos, or the Slough of Despond.
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